Plant & Equipment Manager (South / South-East)

Overall Purpose of Job The Plant Equipment Manager is responsible for the strategic and operational management of plant, tools, equipment, and related compliance activities across the business. The role ensures that assets are safe, compliant, available, cost-effective, and fit for purpose to support operational delivery. The role leads the planning, control, and monitoring of plant and equipment related operational expenditure and capital expenditure, develops business cases and investment requests, and works closely with regional management teams, suppliers, and senior stakeholders to maintain high standards of compliance, serviceability, and operational readiness. The role also provides leadership for key change and governance activities, including winter preparedness planning, implementation of new equipment models, committee leadership, supplier engagement, staff management, and reporting into health and safety governance forums. Expertise Essential academic qualifications / certifications Educated to degree level, or equivalent relevant experience in engineering, asset management, operations, or a related discipline. Professional management qualification or evidence of equivalent management experience. Strong numerical, analytical, and report-writing capability. Ability to develop business cases, financial justifications, and formal investment requests. Good understanding of compliance, governance, and audit requirements within an operational environment. Essential technical skills and job knowledge / experience Extensive experience overseeing large-scale logistics or operational services delivered Strong knowledge of plant, tools, equipment, and asset management principles. Experience managing both Opex and Capex budgets, including forecasting, tracking, and justification of expenditure. Ability to prepare and raise formal internal approvals, including T002 submissions and larger business requests. Strong understanding of statutory, regulatory, and internal compliance requirements relating to plant, property, and equipment. Experience producing monthly compliance reports for senior leadership, including COO-level reporting. Knowledge of supplier performance management and resolution of compliance-related issues with external providers. Experience coordinating major operational changes such as equipment rollouts and asset tracking implementations. Working knowledge of health and safety governance and committee reporting requirements. Experience managing people matters, including 1-2-1s, performance management, and disciplinary processes. Understanding of winter preparedness and resilience planning in an operational environment Role Content Operations Oversight Manage plant and equipment related operational and capital budgets, ensuring effective cost control and value for money. Prepare and justify T002 submissions and develop business cases for larger expenditure and investment requirements. Work with Regional Managers to monitor and improve compliance performance across plant, equipment, and property-related activities. Produce and present monthly compliance reporting to the COO and other senior stakeholders. Quality Compliance Engage with suppliers to address compliance issues, service concerns, performance failures, and corrective actions. Chair the Tools Equipment Committee and ensure actions are progressed and governance maintained. Provide reports and updates to the Health and Safety Committee on relevant plant, equipment, and compliance matters. Leadership Governance Lead and manage staff through regular 1-2-1s, coaching, developing and supporting where required. Set clear operational expectations, governance frameworks, and reporting rhythms Ensure compliance with safety, contractual, and regulatory requirements Complexity •The role operates across multiple operational, financial, compliance, and people management disciplines. •Requires balancing short-term operational needs with longer-term strategic asset planning. •Involves interpretation and application of policy, governance, and compliance requirements across varied operational settings. •Requires coordination across regions, departments, suppliers, and governance groups, often with competing priorities. •The role must manage both routine operational activity and complex change programmes simultaneously. Impact Influence Internally: Influences logistics operating standards, performance expectations, and improvement priorities Provides operational assurance to senior leadership on logistics performance and resilience Partners closely with Operations, Finance, IT, and Transformation teams to deliver integrated outcomes Externally: Leads operational performance engagement with third-party logistics providers Drives supplier accountability through governance, performance reviews, and escalation Influences partner operating models to improve efficiency, safety, and service delivery Nature of problems Typical problem requiring advice Regional teams seeking guidance on compliance standards, equipment suitability, asset replacement, or interpretation of plant and property compliance requirements. Staff requiring support on supplier issues, reporting requirements, winter readiness, or implementation of new systems and equipment. Typical problem requiring escalation Significant compliance breaches or repeated failures involving suppliers, regional operations, plant, or property. Major budget variances, unplanned capital needs, or investment requests requiring senior approval. Escalated people issues, including formal disciplinary matters or persistent performance concerns. Operational risk issues affecting safety, regulatory compliance, service continuity, or winter resilience. Delays or risks in major rollout programmes such as GS700 implementation Most difficult aspect of the job Balancing operational demands, compliance obligations, financial constraints, and stakeholder expectations at the same time. Driving consistency across regions where local pressures and working practices may differ. Managing supplier performance and compliance where service issues affect operational delivery. Making sound decisions on investment, replacement, and prioritisation in a resource-constrained environment. Leading change while maintaining day-to-day service performance and governance standards. Strategic / tactical thinking requirement Strategic Develop longer-term plans for plant, equipment, tracking, compliance, and property-related assurance. Identify investment priorities and contribute to shaping case for future improvement, resilience, and standardisation. Support business readiness for seasonal pressures, regulatory expectations, and operational change. Influence governance forums and senior stakeholders on asset-related risk, investment, and compliance direction. Tactical Resolve day-to-day compliance issues with regional teams and suppliers. Monitor budget performance and control expenditure in-year. Produce management information and compliance reports for governance forums. Coordinate implementation activities, track delivery actions, and address emerging risks quickly. Resource Direct Reports Team Manager x 3 Plant Admin x 1 Indirect Reports Plant Fitters x 18